Consultants
Digby Barker
Drawing on his consultancy experience and government background – including posts in MoD HQ and HM Treasury – Digby specialises in helping companies win and profit from public sector business, advising in particular on marketing strategy and tender preparation. His experience includes research, operational/decision analysis, resource allocation, project management and acquisition, especially the development of procurement strategies, ITTs and tender evaluation schemes.
Doug Bridson MBA FCIPS
Doug has worked in the procurement field since completing a Business Studies degree in the 1970s. The greater part of his career has been spent in manufacturing industry although the last 12 years have been in the utilities sector, latterly as Procurement Director for Scottish Power plc. Most recently he led the initiative to file an application with the EU for exemption from the Utilities Directive for those parts of the UK energy industry fully exposed to competition. Doug is a current member of the Board of Management of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply and a Non-Executive Director of Scottish Enterprise (Ayrshire).
John Clark
John joined the MOD at Coulport Navy Submarine Depot and, after moving to MOD Headquarters in London, undertook a wide range of management appointments in procurement, logistics and transport. He became Deputy Director of the UK National Codification Bureau (UKNCB) in 1996, overseeing the upgrade of the ISIS computer system, representing the UK on the Technical Panel of NATO’s Codification Committee (AC/135) and managing the UK’s Codification output. He led AC/135 and UKNCB collaboration through ISO and other working groups towards the development of data exchange. In 2000, as Head of the UKNCB, John undertook a series of progressive change programmes, with responsibility for a wide range of technical information products. He completed his MOD career as Head of the Technical Information Group within the Directorate General of Support and Engineering, retiring in 2008. John has subsequently established his own management consultancy company, JI
Management Ltd, assisting small to medium-sized enterprises with change management, continuity planning and public procurement bids.
Martin Compton
Martin is a procurement professional trained by the Ford Motor Company. As an innovator, motivator and experienced negotiator, he is a progressive procurement practitioner with supply chain skills and extensive public and private sector experience, both in the UK and abroad. His training, interim management, and electronic procurement.
Colin M. Cram FCIPS
Colin, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply, has held senior positions in public sector procurement for the past 25 years, including central government, higher education and local authorities. He has been responsible throughout for initiating and implementing innovative procurement strategies for a wide range of goods, services and outsourcings and creating and re-engineering procurement organisations and collaborative groups.
Stephen Dickinson
Formerly Director of Procurement at the South West London Procurement Alliance and Head of Purchasing for Kingston Hospital NHS Trust, Stephen has implemented considerable development in procurement management during his career of almost 40 years in the NHS, leading both hospital-based and multi-authority teams. He has worked closely on ensuring that equality and diversity and procurement goals are aligned through effective procurement and commissioning, including contributing to the DH Mosaic project. He has a particular interest in the development of small businesses within service provision to public authorities and has worked on SME compliance with the public contract regulations and ensuring value for money. Stephen has lectured on both graduate and postgraduate courses in public sector procurement and commercial relationships.
Derek Gaynor
Derek has worked in all areas of procurement since 1982. His career has been mainly in the public sector and he has been Procurement Officer at National University of Ireland, Maynooth since 1998. In that role he has overseen the implementation of a variety of centralized contracts, implemented procurement procedures and provided proactive support for the academic and administrative departments of the University. He is a member of CIPS, the IIPMM and the Forum on Public Procurement in Ireland. Prior to 1998, he worked as an Officer of the Defence Forces and at several United Nations missions both in the Middle East and Central America.
Steve Gilbey
Steve has a long track record in the local government procurement community, having left local government after 36 years to become a procurement advisor. He is currently working with IDeA, 4ps and SBV Ltd on a procurement training initiative in the light of the National Procurement Strategy, as well as a number of practical procurement projects with other public sector clients. Since his appointment in 1986 as head of Hertfordshire County Council's procurement service, Steve has been instrumental in raising the profile of procurement both within Hertfordshire and on the national scene.
Florence Gregg
Florence has over 25 years' procurement experience gained in the Health Service and Higher Education sectors. She was Head of Purchasing at Queen's University Belfast from January 1998 to May 2004, where she managed change, implemented e-procurement solutions and developed a proactive, supportive procurement function working with the institution's decentralised part-time buyers. Since then, Florence has worked as a purchasing consultant specialising in performance and efficiency measurement; competitive tendering guidance to both buyers and suppliers; and the development and implementation of procurement strategies, policies and procedures. Her clients include the UK Higher Education sector; Learning and Skills Council; Central Procurement Directorate Northern Ireland; Dublin City Council; BiP Solutions Ltd; and various universities and local authorities in the UK and Ireland. She is a regular speaker at conferences and seminars in the UK, Ireland and USA, and is a Chartered Institute of Arbitrators accredited mediator.
David Griffiths
David was Head of Supply Chain at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, and has spent some 25 years in purchasing and contracts within central government. He has been responsible for procurement policy and planning, including the contractual aspects of Better Quality Services, supply chain management and the professional development of staff within DVLA. He is a graduate member of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply and a member of IPSERA.
Julie Harmer
Julie has worked in the public sector for 35 years and has held senior procurement positions in the NHS, Higher Education and Central Government. She also has experience working in the private sector. She was part of the team that set up the first use of off-shore data capture by a government agency and has latterly been involved with the implementation of an ERP system, e-procurement solutions and the development and implementation of various procurement training solutions.
Peter Howarth
Peter has a long track record in procurement and local government. In October 2003 he started his own consultancy and training company (SBV Ltd) specialising in procurement and contracting matters, primarily in the public sector. He is currently the Chief Executive of the Society of Procurement Officers in Local Government (SOPO). Prior to that he had spent three years with the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) where he worked as a member of the team developing IDeA Marketplace.
Gareth Jones
Gareth has worked in the procurement field since 1971. The greater part of his career has been in the public sector, initially with the National Coal Board and thereafter 22 years in healthcare purchasing. He commenced as a Higher Clerical Officer in Bedford Healthcare and left for the Department of Transport having risen to the post of Director of Central Procurement for Health and Personal Social Services in Northern Ireland.
Paul King
Paul has over 30 years high level management experience in both the private and public sectors. He was a county council Chief Officer, responsible for all commercial activity including tendering for work in competition with the private sector, with over 2,500 staff in five services and a £13m turnover. He was the founder, spokesman and Chair of the Forum of DSO Managers with a membership of over 30 UK local authorities.
Trevor Linton MCIPS
Trevor has spent over 40 years in the building industry and is a chartered quantity surveyor. He has extensive procurement experience gained with both the public sector and commercial organisations. He was a Project Sponsor/Project Manager in Defra and led the first multi-occupied PFI office accommodation project and the team remediating Britain's only WWII mustard gas factory.
Larry Petterson
Larry began his NHS career in Purchasing and Supply in 1961. He has held various senior managerial positions, finally being appointed Head of Procurement and Commercial Development for Cardiff and Vale University Local Health Board in 1995. He chairs the CIPS UK Public Sector Group and is a Trustee of the CIPS Pension Fund. He is a member of the Welsh Assembly Government’s Business Procurement Task Force and has been a keen supporter of the use of the third sector and Supported Business Organisations such as Remploy. He is also a past Chairman of the Health Care Supply Association. Larry was awarded the MBE for services to the NHS and charity in 2003 and the Government Opportunities (GO) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004.
Francis Pullen
Francis has specialised in eProcurement, Project Management and Change Management for both the Private and Public Sectors since 1993, including roles in a high profile UK design and development consultancy and the UK Criminal Justice system.As Principal Associate for his business Armine Associates, he has expanded the portfolio to include further key strands of business consultancy and training. Since 2003 he has been an independent seminar speaker and PASS consultant for BiP Solutions Ltd, delivering seminars for them around the UK to both Public and Private Sector audiences and helping businesses improve their processes.
Eddie Regan
Eddie is BiP Solutions' Senior Procurement Consultant. Working alongside the Client Services team, he frequently assists public sector organisations with clarification and interpretation of EU Directives and a wide variety of legislative issues. Eddie is lead consultant on BiP's PASS Mark Health Check, an evaluation technique that helps identify how organisations in both the public and private sectors can develop more effective processes in respect of all aspects of public sector contracting. A member of the International Purchasing and Supply Education and Research Association (IPSERA), Eddie is also the senior adviser on BiP's unique Tender Support Helpline team, which provides advice on contracting matters to hundreds of clients. For the last 13 years Eddie has lectured regularly on procurement policy and processes at conferences and events, both on behalf of BiP and for a variety of other organisations, including the Society of Procurement Officers in Local Government (SOPO) and the Institute of Directors. He also provides in-house training on the tendering process - law and practice - to personnel in both the public and private sectors, including several multinational organisations.
John Scowen MCIPS
John Scowen, London Borough of Havering, Corporate Procurement Manager John has been in the field of purchasing for 35 years, starting off in the Health Service where he worked his way from Buyer to Assistant District Supplies Manager. He has been part of local government purchasing since 1989 and has held the post of Corporate Procurement Manager for the London Borough of Havering since 1990. He was Chairman of the London Contracts and Supplies Group, Chairman of SOPO (Society of Procurement Officers in Local Government) 2002-2004. One of his objectives is to co-ordinate the purchasing of commodities throughout London and he has worked hard to achieve this.
Brian Shipton
Worked in central Government for 12 years as the Head of Procurement and Contract Management for the Training and Development Agency for Schools where he developed the procurement function for a newly formed NDPB. Developed and delivered procurement and contract management training workshops aimed at developing the intelligent internal customer. An accredited Gateway Reviewer has taken part in many Medium and High Risk reviews, including the Ministry of Defence.
Commenced his working life in medical sciences and reached the pinnacle of his career structure as a Principal Pathology Medical Technologist in the NHS where he worked in excess of 16 years. Moved from the sciences into general management and became the Directorate Manager for non-clinical support services in a world renowned hospital in Cambridgeshire. Joined a Swiss company as general manager to provide pathology services to the NHS under a flagship PFI agreement.
Became a Justice of the Peace in 2003 and sits on the bench in Huntingdon.
John Smith
John had a long, varied and successful career in the NHS. Having held a number of senior posts in procurement including spells as Associate Regional Commercial Manager in Wessex Regional Health Authority, National Purchasing Executive at the NHS Procurement Directorate and International Procurement Consultant at NHS Overseas Enterprises he joined NHS Estates in 2001 as Assistant NHS Housing Coordinator. In this post he worked closely with the, then, Minister of Health, John Hutton, and Senior Civil Servants at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to ensure the delivery of accessible, appropriate and affordable housing for key-workers as part of the NHS Plan.
David Worrall
David has most recently been the most senior procurement officer for Oldham Council as assistant director for procurement and special projects. Prior to this he was head of procurement for Sefton council, providing fellow o fficers and elected members with advic e on policy and direction of travel. He has been the lead officer on the implementation of e-procurement systems and the P rocure-to-P ay process, and has had responsibility for managing the Accounts Payable F unction , including the implementation of document scanning. He has also provided advice and direction on the application of the EU Directives and enquiries made under the Freedom of Information Act. David was responsible for a number of initiatives in engaging with SME s and the t hird s ector and was an active member of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA) Procurement Group, working towards increased collaboration across the Councils and the North West, in particular with the former Regional Centre of Excellence.
Paul Wright
Paul is Managing Director of PAWA Consulting Ltd, a management consultancy firm working mainly in the public sector. He has been providing training and consultancy in purchasing and supply chain management to a wide range of clients since 1998. Paul and his associates have worked extensively for public sector organisations in the UK including regional development agencies, business links, councils and cluster teams. Overseas he has worked extensively for the oil and gas industries. Before founding PAWA Paul spent a decade at ICI in a variety of roles, including business development. His last role was as a engineering contracts manager responsible for global and regional framework agreements.